Cura 4.8

Finally bit the bullet and bought a printer.

Managed to get my head round Fusion 360, downloaded Cura 4.8 and printed a few easy parts to get me started. All good.

Now wanting to dive a bit deeper and looking at supporting overhangs etc.

Am I alone in finding Cura the most counter intuitive bit of software I have ever come across?
If so, any other recommendations!

I doubt it - if you go back over the last 40 years or so.🙂

Kinda agree, I don't think its unintuitive but I does seem to be a bit messy imo.

Anyway, to do support for overhangs click the little pencil icon in the top right, scroll down to "support" tick "generate support" tick "everywhere" tick "45" under overhang angle.

This will add support for all overhangs 45 degrees or more. 🙂

I've found it ok so far, about 3 weeks in use, but the supports are a mystery to me! I have used them but found them to be a bugger to get off and then there is a fair bit of cleaning up to do. I've not been brave enough to use the Tree version yet...

I'll watch this thread with interest for hints and tips from the experts.

I don't think Cura is any worse than other slicer software. I am currently trying to get my head around PrusaSlicer which does all the same things as Cura but not necessarily in the same way. Part of the problem, I think, is that 3D printers are far from being plug and play. Every little nuance of operation can be tweaked in some way. Leading to probably in the region of 500 or so settings that can be changed, some of these make no apparent difference whilst others are in 'crash and burn' territory.

This need for variability is in mainly connected to the variability in medium. No two rolls of filament even from the same maker are identical even if nominally the same material. This needs then a degree of experimentation to find the right temperature, speed, retraction, cooling etc. every time a new roll is loaded. Even then once you have established a good working list of settings, a particularly hot, cold, damp, or windy day may make a difference to the outcome. There are of course other things like wearing nozzles, bearings or indeed a defective STL file to contend with.

I am afraid there is no easy answer to any of this. The main thing with the software is to only alter one thing at a time and when you have achieved what you want save the settings file. To a certain extent it is a case of practice makes perfect, I doubt you will ever remember every setting as there are just too many but you will get used to where to look for particular items.

Keep going it will get easier, not simple but easier.

John

Hi

I have been using Cura for some time. I lost it when v4 came along and the screen / interface all moved. I went back to v3.3.1 and i find it much better. i'm using it now as we speak. You might want to try it and see.

regards

Steve

Might be more productive to explain what the actual problems are?

As slicing a basic STL model is easy-peasy with Cura I guess something complicated such as shapes needing supports. Or maybe a difficult printer/filament combination requiring the advanced settings to be fiddled with? Cura might not be the problem. My dad's car had a seriously faulty clutch that mysteriously fixed itself after I'd had several driving lessons...

Most software gets tricky when the user gets into 'not for tourists' territory. Cura seems pretty typical to me - an easy front-end for simple jobs with the option to unleash a multitude of advanced settings on anything awkward. Unfortunately using advanced settings often requires advanced skills. (Or a large dose of luck. You can guess how I know, blush!)

Dave

Basic problem is that looking at a You Tube video on how to modify supports in Cura, I don't have the icons on my screen that the guy doing the demo has - and I can't find them even though it's supposed to be the same version!

Many of us brought up on PCs or Macs can navigate our way around all sorts of different software quite easily and then we come across some software written by someone who's thrown all the standard UIs out of the window!
I may try an earlier version - thanks for the suggestion Steve but I'm looking elsewhere at the mo.

You could try "repetier-host" which comes with the Slic3r slicer. That's what I started with and I found the combination quite easy to use.

Russell

Only the most important settings are displayed when you pull down the printing menu. You need to go into the settings menu where you can select additional parameters to be displayed in the pull down printing menu.

Hope this helps.

Peter

To further add to Peter's advice,

When you open the printer settings , if you hover your mouse to the right of the "Support" item, you will see the settings icon( like a ships wheel) . Clicking this will allow selection of more Support settings.

If you go to the Marketplace, in the top right of the main screen, you can download some Extensions and Plugins. One I found useful, called Auto Orientation, will arrange your item so that the least support is needed.

I think all these slicer programs are similar but two advantages of Cura are 1), it is very customisable and 2), it is probably the most used so plenty of video tutorials on youtiube

ger

You don't sat who you are watching on you tube.

The channel I follow is Filament Friday , logo is CHEP.

I find him clear and concise and he has just posted a vid on placing custom supports where ever you want them.

It seemed to be very simple with only a few mouse clicks. Not tried it myself as I am still using 4.6 it does what i need for now and I HATE changing.

Good luck.

Clive

Many thanks for the input folks - lots to learn!

Peter